Combination foot switch



Sept. 20,

' M. M D. WILLIAMS COMBINATION FOOT SWITCH Filed Sept. 15. 1924 PatentedSept. 20, 192".

TES

* UNITED s-r when PATENT OFFE COMBINATION FOOT SWITCH.

Application filed September 15, 1924. SeriaI No. 7237,8957.

The resent invention relates to circuitcontrollin switches andparticularly to such switc es used for controlling the lights of anautomobile.

6. An object of the present invention is to provide a switch orcircuit-controlling device particularly adapted for placing the bri htlights and dim lights in circuit, accor 'ngto the situation in which thedriver finds himself. r

Anotherobject of the invention is to provide a switch for this purposeby which the driver can place in circuit either the dim or bright lightswithout glancing away 16 from the roadway and without removing his handsfrom the steering wheel;

A further object is to provide a device for this purpose which willenable a driver to control the lights of an automobile by t moving hisfoot.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a foot switch forthe purpose stated, which is adapted to act also as a foot rest inconnection with the accelerator. Still further objects and advantages ofthe invention will appear from the following detailed description, takenin connection with the accompanying drawings which illustrate apreferredembodiment of the in- 3o vention, and in which:

Figure 1 is a view partly diagrammatic and partly in verticalcross-section, and showing. a circuit controlling switch in accordancewith the present lnVl1tl0l1;"

. ll Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the switch housing shown in Fig. 1;and

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3.'-3 of Fig. 1.

Referring in detail to these drawings, the

4 reference-numeral 11 indicates a' switch housin having a flattop-portion 12. vertical en walls13 and 14 and end flanges 15 and 16.Fhe end flanges 15 and 16' may be provided with holes adapted to receivebolts screws, or other securing means by which the housing 11 may besecured to the floorboard of an automobile. The housing 11 is preferablymounted in proximity to the foot accelerator 17, and the too-portion 12me. conveniently serve as a steady foot rest w ile operating saidaccelerator.

An operating rod 18 passes loosely through an opening in the verticalwall 19 of a stationary supporting plate 20. which may be fixedlysecured to the under side of the top 12 by screws 21, and the rod 18also passes through another opening 22 in the end wall 14 of the switchhousing. Both openings are preferably square and the rod 18 ispreferably square in cross section, as shown in Fig. 3, to preventrotation of the rod in the openings while still allowing it toreciprocate therein.

The rod 18 has a portion extendin out side of the switch housing 11,whlch is bent upwardly. as shown at 23, and terminates in an enlar edfoot-engaging portion 24 which extends upwardly beyond the top of thehousing. The other end of the rod 18 is preferably screwthreaded for thereception of a. nut 25 by means of'which a short downwardly extendingarm 26 is'retained on said rod. A coil spring 27 loosely encirclesthe-rod 18 between the arm 26 and the vertical wall 19 of the guideplate 20 and tends to maintain said rod in the position shown in Fig.1.A notch 28 having one vertical wall and one sloping or beveled wall isprovided in the upper surface of the rod 18, and a fiat spring 29secured to the inside of the switch housing 11 on the end wall 14, hasits free end in contact with the underside of the rod 18. and acts toforce said rod upwardly.

The rod 18 is thus maintained normally in' the position shown in Fig. 1by the :co1l

spring 27. When the driver moves the rod toward the right, byrnoving theenlarged end 24 in that direction by his foot, the

-coil spring tends to return the rod to its original position until thenotch 28 arrives in the opening 22, at which time the fiat spring 29will cause the rod to move upwardly slightly. The notched portion of therod incngagcment with the adjacent portion of the end wall 14 preventsreturn of the rod to its former position until the driver depresses theend 24 of the rod, which action releases the engagement of the notchedportion of the rod with the end wall 18 and allows the coil sprin 27 toreturn the rod to its former position. It will thus be seen that the rod18, together sis with the arm 26 carried thereby, are normally held ininner position by the coil spring, and'that they may be moved to outerposition by the operators toot, where theywill be held by the notch 28until re leased by downward pressure on the end 24 of the rod, afterwhich they will be returned by the spring 27 to their former position. i

The arm 26 completes the dim light circuit in the forward or outerposition of the rod 18, and-the bright light circuit in the innerosit-ion of the rod 18, as follows:

A short screw threaded bolt 30 passes through the lowerportion of thearm 26, and is preferably insulated from said arm by a non conductingsleeve (not shown) and ers being held fast in the arm 26 by a nut32threaded on the end of the bolt. The belt thus moves forward andbackward with the arm 26, and its ends form contacting members adaptedto complete the bright and dim light circuits, respectively.

At one end of its travel the bolt 30 con-' tacts with a spring 33,-which is mounted on a bolt 34 secured in the wall 13 of the, switchhousing, but insulated therefrom, Atthe other end of its travel the bolt30 contacts with a similar spring 35 mounted on a bolt 36 secured in thedepending vertical portion 19 of the plate 20, but insulated therefrom.

The letter S indicates any usual or convenient form of switch, which maybe mounted on the instrument board of the automobile, and which, in theposition indicated in Fig. 1, completes the circuit controlling thebright lights.

A conducting wire 36 leads from the switch S to a battery B and isgrounded at G. A second wire 37 leads from the switch S to. the bolt 30,and is connected thereto so that the adjacent wire portion is notstretched taut but isadapted to move with the bolt 30 as the rod 18reciprocates.

- the resistance R to thewire 38.

When the bolt.3O is disconnected from the spring 35, and contacts withthe spring 33, the bright light circuit is completed, the switch S beingassumed to be closed. In

driving, when the operator desires to dim by insulating washers 31, thebolt and washlight circuit by the separation of the bolt 30 from thespring 35 and completing the bright light circuit by its contact withthe spring 33.

By this construction a light control switch is provided which can beoperated by the driver without taking his eyes off the road, and withouttelling his hands off the wheel and fumbling for a switch, by a simplemovement of his foot sideways along the accelerator foot rest to dim hislights, and by a sh ht downward pressure to light his bright i hts, thespring 27 causing the bright lig t circuit to be completed withoutfurther attention from the driver.

What I claim is:

1. A circuit controlling switch structure comprising. a housing, a pairof stationary spring contacts therein, aneL-shape'd rod 'operativelymounted in the housing and having its short arm disposed exteriorly ofthe housing to permit manipulation thereof, a

contact member carried by the rod and adapted to selectively engage saidspring contacts, spring means on the rod normally maintaining saidmember in engagement with one of the s ring contacts and latch means forreleasab y maintaining said member in engagement with the other of thespring contacts.

2. A circuit controllingswitch structure comprising a housing includinga flat top, vertical end walls and side walls; a supporting walldepending centrally from said top; an L-shaped operating rod having itslong arm nonrotatably and slidably traversing the'supporting wall and anend wall and its short arm extending above said top in position foractuation by the foot of an operator; spring contacts mounted inalinement on the supporting wall and the other end wallrespectively; acontact member fast to and depending from the inner end of the rod andadapted to selectively engage said spring contacts; spring meansnormally maintaining said contact member in engagement with one of thespring contacts and latch means releasable by movement of the rod formaintainin the contact member in engagement with t e other of the springcontacts.

3, A circuit controlling switch structure comprising; a housingincluding a flat top, eda ted for use as afoot rest, vertical end wal sand side walls and end flanges adapted to be secured to the floor boardof an automobile; a supporting wall depending centrally from said top;an L-shaped operating rod having its long arm nonrotatably and slidablytIEWEISlIIg the supporting wall and an end wall and its short armextending above said top in position for actuation by the foot of anoperator; spring contacts mounted in alinement on the supporting walland the other end wall respectively; a

contact member fast to and depending from spring contacts and latchmeans releasable the inner end of the rod and adapted to seby movementof the rod for maintaining the lectively engage said spring contacts;contact member in engagement with the I s ring means mounted on the rodbetween other of the spring contacts.

5 the supporting wall and the contact mem- In'testimony whereof Iafiix'my signature.

ber normally maintaining said contacting member in engagement with oneof the MARSHALL MOD. WILLIAMS. I

